Quail Production (Part 1)

Quail by some distinction are classified as “game” or “hunting” birds and as such, should not be
compared with chicken, whose requirements are different.

On a commercial scale, quail raising has not attracted the interest of investors because of the lack
of data particularly with regards to feeding. Many people who go into quail raising are usually
hobbyists who are not income-conscious.

Breeds of Quail

* Japanese Seattle
* Silver
* Negro
* Japanese Taiwan/Chinese Quail
* Tuxedo
* Brown Crosses nos. 1 and 2

Starting the Project

To start a project, care must be exercised in the selection of the first stock. There are many quail
breeding farms on and near the Metro Manila area.

A. Selection of Stock

For a beginner, it is best to start with quail pullets about 30-35 days old. Some of the pointers in
selecting quails are as follows:
1. Body Conformation

a. The feathers should be tidy and neat

2. Choose birds with uniform size. A mature (60-day old) Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica)
would have an average weight of 120 grams. However, a 30-35 day-old bird would only average
100 grams. The American quail (Coturnix coturnix) however weigh heavier at 220 grams for the
mature bird and 200 grams for the 30-35 day-old.

3. Record of the parents stock

a. Size of eggs
b. Laying efficiency – a 65% average laying efficiency within 300 days laying period is desirable
c. Growth rate/body weight

B. Size of Flock
The size of the initial stock totally depends on the financial capacity of the person. However, it is
not advisable to start big. Quails are not easy to raise and a beginner should first get the
necessary experience before going into large scale. Quails multiply rapidly and therefore
expansion will not be a problem. A beginner can start with 10-15 pullets.

Management

A. Housing and Equipment

One of the advantages in quail raising is the relatively small space that is required.
Commensurately, the cost of putting up a cage is less. The materials commonly used in making
quail cages are:
1. Plywood
2. ¼ inch mesh wire
3. 1 x 1 lumber to serve as framework

For every stage in the quail’s life, space requirement varies. This is true as in the case of other
fowls and even livestock animals. The following will help guide the raiser in determining the
space required for quails:

Stage Japanese American

Since quails are not efficient feed converter, they should not be raised for broiler production.
Layer cages should not be too high preferably a 5″ and 6″ in height and can accommodate the
Japanese and American breed, respectively. Providing too much space will encourage too much
movement thereby increasing the risk of injuries.

B. Brooding Management

Temperature

During the first five (5) days, the temperature requirement of the quail chick is 95°F, down to
85°F on the 6th day until 10th day after which the quail birds will have developed enough
feathers to keep their body warm under ordinary room temperature.

Provide air vents to ensure better circulation of air in the brooding box. Spread used clean cloth
or sack over the screened portion of the brooder especially during the first 10 days. This will help
conserve the heat in the brooder. Place five or six layers of clean and dry newspaper to cover the
mesh wire flooring during the first 10 days. This practice is necessary because it will not only
help conserve the heat inside the brooder box but more importantly, cleaning and removal of
quail manure (which is done on every other paper) is facilitated by just rolling the topmost layer
of the paper. After the 10th day, all the papers are removed provide a feeding trough covered
with ¼ mesh wire to avoid too much spillage. Water in the drinking fountain should be changed
daily and care must be exercised to avoid spilling of water over the paper to prevent unnecessary
dampness.

Gas lamp or electric bulb may be used to control the temperature inside the brooder. The brooder
box must be cat and rat proof. With proper feeds, enough water and optimum temperature
maintained, the mortality of quails can be kept at 5-8% during the brooding stage which usually
last up to 15 days.

C. Rearing Management

After the 15th day, the birds are transferred to the growing cages. During the growing stage, it is
not advisable to expose the birds to more than 12 hours of light. For smaller operation, a
brooder/grower box combination can be constructed but the space requirement of the birds
should be observed.

Only birds which are healthy and with uniform size should be transferred to the growing cages.
The small ones should be disposed. The average mortality from the start of the growing period
up to 35 days is 1-4%. On the 35th day, the male birds are already discernable by the dark brown
color if the breast feather. At this stage, the female birds can be segregated and transferred to the
laying cages. Approximately 40% of the total population can be chosen as layers on an assumed
50/50 male/female ratio. The remaining birds can be fattened up to 60 days before these are
dressed and sold as broilers. During the 25 days fatening period, light should be restricted from
6-8 hours a day. This practice will improve the quality of meat.

D. Layer Management

On the average, quail start laying after 45 days from hatching. The production cycle lasts for
300-320 days and within this period the laying efficiency should be maintained at 65%. Some of
the major consideration when managing layers are:
1. Feeding – this will be discussed separately

2. Water – like any other bird, quail needs a lot of fresh and clean water. Whenever possible,
flowing water should be maintained except when there is supply problem in which case water
should be replaced daily and the watering trough must be cleaned everyday.

3. Culling – for large scale operation, it is advisable that massive culling be done regularly,
preferably on a quarterly basis or even once every 4 months. Birds that have grown fat, or are
sickly and are not laying eggs. This latter condition is manifested by the size of the vent and the
conformation of the abdominal parts.

4. Removal of waste – because of the high protein content of the quail feeds, quail manure has
high ammonia content which will cause discomfort for the birds if not removed daily. Removal
of the manure of the manure can be facilitated by placing a manure receptacle or receiver under
the cage.
5. Light – laying quails may be given extra light up to midnight. This will allow the birds to
consume the feed in the trough. Furthermore, the weaker birds in the group will have enough
time to eat after the dominant ones have eaten their share.

6. It is not advisable to mix male birds in the laying cage except when fertile eggs are to be
produced for future replacement, the male should be kept in separate cage and should be mixed
with layers at the time fertile eggs are to be produced at a ratio of 1:6 and 1:3 for the Japanese
and American breed, respectively.

7. Quail birds are very sensitive to high salt level in the feeds. The optimum level of this mineral
should be kept at 7% and in no case be more than 1%

E. Feeding Management

The major cause of failure in quail raising is the faulty feeding practice employed by some raiser.
Most quail raisers today feed commercial chicken feeds to quails. This is an erroneous practice
and should be corrected. The protein requirements of chicken and quails are different and as such
the use of chicken feeds in quail raising is not advisable. Below is a comparison of the crude
protein requirement of chicken and quail:

Stage    Quail    Chicken

From the above information, we can clearly see the marked difference in the primary
requirement of both birds. Quail cannot survive on chicken feeds for a long time. If ever they
will survive, the mortality rate will be very high sometimes reaching up to 70% from day old to
45 days. Moreover, the growth of the birds is very uneven and the survivors will not be efficient
layers. The productive laying period for quails fed with chicken feed does not go beyond six
months.

Another disadvantage of feeding chicken mash to quails is the vary occurrence of molting which
affects severely the egg production.

The claim that mixing quail feeds with higher protein is expensive and not economical is
baseless. The advantages of giving the right ration far outweigh the cost of giving chicken feeds.
These advantages can be summarized below:
1. mortality rate can be kept low with good feed:

* 5-8% from 1-5 days

2. Production:
1. Laying efficiency can be easily maintained within the average range of 63% – 68% for a
period of 300-320 days. It is not rare to get laying efficiency of 80%.
2. Eggs are bigger and more nutritious.
3. Breeders fertility and hatchability are high.

These things when quantified and taken together would positively refute the claim that feeding
quails with higher protein content as recommended here is costly and uneconomical.

The feed consumption of quail at different stages are:

During the first 15 days, the feeds of the birds should be grounded to a fineness enough to pass
an ordinary window screen wire. Like chicken, quails are affected by abrupt changes in feeding.
Hence, it is not advisable to change feed abruptly.

F. Maintaining Health

There is no known morbid disease of quails. While they suffer from some respiratory disorders,
these do not spread fast and the mortality rate is very low. Hence, it is not difficult to maintain
the health of birds. Regular cleaning and disinfection program, however, should be followed.
Cages and broiler boxes including the incubator and hatchery trays can be cleaned with
pressurized water then dried under the sun, spraying with disinfectant follows. Vitamin premix
can also be added to the feeds or the drinking water to promote growth and improve the laying
performance.

Marketing

1. Eggs
Eggs are the main product of quails. For small scale/backyard quail raising, this can be placed in
a basket and marketed fresh. For bigger operation, it is advisable to pack eggs in carton boxes
with individual dividers to protect the quality of the eggs. Storing eggs in a cool dry place where
air circulation is good can keep eggs fresh for a period of seven days.

2. Broilers/stewers
The average feed conversion ratio of quail is 3:1. This poor feed conversion efficiency makes
broiler production uneconomical and therefore any broiler produced should be treated secondary
product in quail raising. The procedure in dressing quail is the same as in chicken. The birds are
bleed and scaled in hot water (about 132-135 F) after that, the feathers are removed. Evisceration
follows. The dressed birds are then chilled and packed by the dozen or in kilos.
3. Prices
Broilers are more tender than stewers (culled layers). As such, the former are sold at higher
price. The selling price of these should be based on the cost of production from day old to 60
plus the dressing, storage and related selling cost.

4. Quail Production

i. Cost of production (100 quails)

ii. Income computation

70 eggs/day x P0.60/egg = P42.00

iii. Housing equipment

100 quails x P5.00/quail

iv. Other sources of income

Male quails which are not needed